Common snipe
Common snipe | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Charadriiformes |
Family: | Scolopacidae |
Genus: | Gallinago |
Species: | G. gallinago
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Binomial name | |
Gallinago gallinago | |
Subspecies | |
G. g. faroeensis | |
Range of G. gallinago Breeding Resident Non-breeding
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Synonyms | |
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The common snipe (Gallinago gallinago) is a small, stocky wader native to the Old World.
Distribution and habitat
The breeding habitats are
Taxonomy
The common snipe was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Scolopax gallinago.[2] The species is now placed with 17 other snipe in the genus Gallinago that was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760.[3][4] The name gallinago is Neo-Latin for a woodcock or snipe from Latin gallina, "hen" and the suffix -ago, "resembling".[5]
Two subspecies are recognised:[4]
- G. g. faeroeensis (Brehm, CL, 1831) – breeds in Iceland, Shetland Islands; non-breeding in British Isles
- G. g. gallinago (Linnaeus, 1758) – nominate subspecies; breeds in central, north Europe and Asia; non-breeding in west Europe, Africa, Indonesia and Japan
The North American Wilson's snipe was previously considered the same species, and is listed as such in older field guides.
Description
Adults are 25–27 cm (9.8–10.6 in) in length with a 44–47 cm (17–19 in) wingspan and a weight of 80–140 g (2.8–4.9 oz) (up to 180 g (6.3 oz) pre-migration). They have short greenish-grey legs and a very long (5.5–7 cm (2.2–2.8 in)) straight dark bill. The body is mottled brown with straw-yellow stripes on top and pale underneath. They have a dark stripe through the eye, with light stripes above and below it. The wings are pointed.[6][7]
The common snipe is the most widespread of several similar snipes. It most closely resembles the Wilson's snipe (G. delicata) of North America, which was until recently considered to be a subspecies – G. g. delicata – of the common snipe. They differ in the number of tail feathers, with seven pairs in G. gallinago and eight pairs in G. delicata; the North American species also has a slightly thinner white trailing edge to the wings (the white is mostly on the tips of the secondaries).[8][9] Both species breed in the Aleutian Islands.[6] It is also very similar to the pin-tailed snipe (G. stenura) and Swinhoe's snipe (G. megala) of eastern Asia; identification of these species there is complex.[10]
The subspecies faeroeensis is normally more richly toned on the breast, its upperparts and the head than the nominate gallinago.[11]
Behaviour
The common snipe is a well camouflaged bird, it is usually shy and conceals itself close to ground vegetation and flushes only when approached closely. When flushed, they utter a sharp note that sounds like scape, scape and fly off in a series of aerial zig-zags to confuse predators.[12] They forage in soft mud, probing or picking up food by sight. They mainly eat insects and earthworms, also some plant material.[7]
The male performs "winnowing" display during courtship, flying high in circles and then taking shallow dives to produce a "drumming" sound by vibrating its tail feathers. This sound has been compared by others to the bleating of a sheep or goat; hence in many languages the snipe is known by names signifying "flying goat", "heaven's ram", as in Scotland by "heather-bleater"[12] and in Finnish the name taivaanvuohi, "sky goat".
Wing shape does not differ between sedentary and migratory common snipe, suggesting that social selection influences wing shape given this species aerial displays during courtship.[14]
Breeding
Common snipe nest in a well-hidden location on the ground, laying four eggs of a dark olive colour, blotched and spotted with rich brown,[12] which are incubated by the female for 18–21 days. The freshly hatched young are covered in dark maroon down, variegated with black, white and buff.[12] The young are cared for by both parents, each parent looking after half the brood, with fledging in 10–20 days.[6][7]
Conservation
Overall, the species is not threatened. Populations on the southern fringes of the breeding range in Europe are however declining with
The
History
Old folk names include "mire snipe", "horse gowk", "heather bleat", and the variant spelling "snite".[16] See snipe for other aspects of the name.
References
- . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
- ^ Linnaeus, Carl (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1 (10th ed.). Holmiae (Stockholm): Laurentii Salvii. p. 147.
- ^ Brisson, Mathurin Jacques (1760). Ornithologie, ou, Méthode contenant la division des oiseaux en ordres, sections, genres, especes & leurs variétés (in French and Latin). Vol. 5. Paris: Jean-Baptiste Bauche. pp. 298, 304.
- ^ Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2021). "Sandpipers, snipes, coursers". IOC World Bird List Version 11.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
- ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
- ^ ISBN 84-87334-20-2.
- ^ ISBN 0-19-854099-X.
- ^ Leader, P. (1999). "Identification forum: Common Snipe and Wilson's Snipe". Birding World. 12 (9): 371–374.
- ^ Reid, M. (2008). "Identification of Wilson's and Common Snipe". British Birds. 101 (4): 189–200.
- ^ Carey, G.; Olsson, U. (1995). "Field Identification of Common, Wilson's, Pintail and Swinhoe's Snipes". Birding World. 8 (5): 179–190.
- ^ Reid, Martin (2008) "Identification of Wilson's and Common Snipe", British Birds 101, April, p. 190
- ^ a b c d public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Snipe". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
- ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
- .
- ^ "Species". Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA). Retrieved 14 November 2021.
- ISBN 0-19-214155-4.
External links
- "Common snipe media". Internet Bird Collection.
- Ageing and sexing (PDF; 5.1 MB) by Javier Blasco-Zumeta & Gerd-Michael Heinze
- "Gallinago gallinago". Avibase.
- Gallinago gallinago at Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS)
- Items, photos and sounds related to Gallinago gallinago at Europeana: Europe's digital library, museum and archive
- BirdLife species factsheet for Gallinago gallinago
- Common snipe photo gallery at VIREO (Drexel University)
- Interactive range map of Gallinago gallinago at IUCN Red List maps
- Audio recordings of Common snipe on Xeno-canto.